Conditioning of business machine cards



p 1 6 F. YANNELLI CONDITIONING OF BUSINESS MACHINE CARDS Filed Aug. 23, 1954 INVENTOR ,W/UHK Yd/7/7Q Z Z 4' ATTORNEYS United States Patent CONDITIONING OF BUSINESS MACHINE CARDS Frank Yannelli, Stratford, Conn.

Application August 23, 1954, Serial No. 451,403

8 Claims. (Cl. 219-19) This invention relates to the conditioning of cards of the type used in business machines and the like, and more particularly to the maintaining of such cards free from moisture.

It is common practice, in the use of automatic business machines and the like which operate punched or otherwise marked cards, to store the cards in stacks or piles, which are kept in suitable racks for the purpose. These racks are usually arranged in the room in which the machine is located, or in an adjacent room so as to be readily accessible for use when desired, and in many instances such rooms are subject to the usual changes of temperature and humidity occasioned by the prevailing weather.

I have found that when the weather is wet, damp or humid the stacks of cards used for business machines will absorb minute amounts of moisture from the atmosphere to such an extent that they may greatly interfere with the proper operation of the machine. If a great amount of humidity is present in the atmosphere, as is often encountered during spring and summer weather, the amount of moisture picked up by the cards may be so great as to preclude running them through the machine. I have discovered that if a stack of cards which is in such a humid condition is subjected to a warming and drying influence, as by heating them with an electric heater or infrared bulb or other suitable heating and drying medium, the condition of the cards may be quickly restored to that necessary for their proper operation in the machine. I have further discovered that a suitable drying or heating device may be conveniently incorporated in the storage racks in which the cards are kept, to maintain the cards at all times in proper condition for passing through the machine, while at the same time not producing any appreciable undesirable heat in the room.

Accordingly an object of the present invention is to provide an improved storage or rack means for business cards or the like, by which the cards will be maintained sufficiently free from moisture to enable them to be used in business machines at any desired time without difliculty and without requiring further conditioning.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved card conditioning rack as above set forth, which will not appreciably add to or raise the temperature of the room or area in which the cards are kept.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved card conditioning rack in accordance with the foregoing, which is simple and compact in its construction, reliable in operation and economical to produce.

A feature of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved multiple card conditioning rack for business machine cards and the like, wherein common heating means is provided for a plurality of stacks or piles of cards.

Another feature of the invention resides in the provision of an improved card conditioning car rack or storage means wherein edge portions of the piles or stacks of cards are subjected to a heating or drying influence, thus insuring that virtually each and every individual card is exposed to the conditioning influence.

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an improved storage rack for business machine cards made in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of an improved card conditioning rack illustrating a modification of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a business machine card of the type adapted to be stored in the racks of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken through the base and a portion of a compartment of the rack shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a card conditioning rack illustrating still another modification of the invention.

Referring to Fig. l the improved card conditioning rack of the invention shown therein comprises a base 10 having an upright backboard 11 and sides 12 and 13. Secured to the base 10 and backboard 11, and spaced from the sides 12 and 13 and from each other are partitions 14 dividing the space between the sides 12 and 13 into a plurality of compartments 15 which are adapted to hold piles or stacks of cards 16 of the type used in business machines and the like. One such card 16 is shown in Fig. 3.

In accordance with the present invention means are provided by which the cards 16 contained in the rack are maintained relatively dry and free of excessive moisture, and thereby in condition for use at any time in the business machine. As shown in Fig. 1, this means comprises a pair of heaters 17 disposed within the base 10 below the compartments 15 and cards 16. The heater 17 may be constituted of elongate infrared tubes supplied with current by an electric cord 18. Each tube 17 extends adjacent to and past the compartments 15, and the base 10 may be provided with openings 19 by which communication is established between the interior of the base and the compartments 15. Thus heat from the heaters 17 may pass upward into the compartments 15 through the openings 1.9, to dry the cards 16 and prevent them from absorbing moisture from the atmosphere. If desired, the top of the base 10 may be provided with longitudinal grooves 20 communicating with the openings 19, see Fig. 4, by which heat may circulate beneath the cards and effect a more thorough drying thereof.

In place of the infrared tubes 17 any other suitable heating means may be provided, as for example electric heating coils insulated with asbestos, porcelain, or other suitable media.

It will be readily understood that the heating means 17 will be of the type requiring a small current. Accordingly they may be left on continuously without unduly raising the temperature of the room in which the rack is kept. It is only necessary that a very small amount of heat be supplied to maintain the cards dry and in opera-- tive condition, provided that the heat is steady or continuous.

' Under certain situations a discontinuous energization of the heating means might be desired, involving greater amounts of energy, and it is intended that such arrangement also come within the scope of the present invention.

Another embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig. 2, wherein a card conditioning rack 25 is provided comprising a bottom or base member 26, an upright back member 27 to which an upright side 28 is attached. Also attached to the base 26 and back 27 are partitions 29 and 30, the partitions 29 being thicker than the partition 30 and having upright heating means 31 disposed within them. The heating means 31 may be infrared tubes as above disclosed, or any other suitable heating device. Considering the embodiment of Fig. 2, each card of the stacks of cards 16 in the compartments will have its side edges subjected to the drying efiect of the heating means 31. If desired, each of the partition members 29 and 30 may be made thick and have suitable heating means embedded or otherwise provided in it, in which event both sides of the stacks of cards, except for the end stacks will be subjected to the drying influence. Ends 32 and partitions 33 of a rack 34, as shown in Fig. 5, may all be provided with drying coils, if a more complete drying of the cards is found to be necessary.

It will be understood that, by the present invention I have provided novel and improved means by which business machine cards may be stored in racks and continuously maintained in a relatively dry condition, suitable for immediate use in the machine. The card conditioning racks of this invention are seen to be simple and economical to fabricate, and are reliable and foolproof in their operation.

Variations and modifications may be made within the scope of the claims and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

l claim:

1. A card conditioning rack for holding and storing a plurality of stacks of business machine cards in 'sufiiciently dry condition for instantaneous use, comprising a card-support structure having a bottom, vertical back wall, and a plurality of vertical partition walls forming juxtaposed vertically extending compartments adjacent each other for holding cards in stacks; and heating means carried within said structure and disposed closely adjacent the compartments thereof, said heating means being arranged to provide heat transfer to said compartments to heat stacks of cards which may be carried in the compartments, for the purpose of maintaining the cards in a relatively dry condition.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1 in which there is a partition separating adjoining compartments, and

in which the heating means is disposed in said partition and provides a predetermined amount of heat for application to the edges of the stacks of cards carried in said compartments.

3. The invention as defined in claim 2 in which the heating means is elongate and extends upward from points adjacent the bottoms of the compartments.

4. The invention as defined in claim 1 in which the heating means .comprises narrow, elongate heaters each extending adjacent to and past the compartments for holding the cards.

5. The invention as defined in claim 4 in which the heaters comprise infrared tubes.

6. The invention as defined in claim 1 in which there are a number of partitions separating adjoining compartments, and in which there is a heating means in every other partition.

7. The invention as defined in claim 1 in which the card-support structure comprises partitions between the compartments and end plates, and in which there is a heating means in each partition and end plate.

8. A-card conditioning rack for holding and storing a plurality of stacks of business machine cards in suffi' ciently .dry condition for instantaneous use, comprising a hollow base; a card-support structure on said base, having vertically extending compartments adjacent each other for holding cards in stacks; and heating means carried in said base and disposed below and closely adjacent the compartments thereof, said heating means beingarranged to provide heat transfer to said compartments to heat stacks of cards which may be carried in the compartments, for the purpose of maintaining the cards in a relatively dry condition.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,589,710 McCatIerty June 22, 1926 2,018,024 Kress Oct. 22, 1935 2,091,746 Wiley Aug. 31, 1937 2,119,680 Long June 7, 1938 2,613,815 Mohrmann Oct. 14, 1952 

